Mail-box.



E. VAN 0. DAVIS.

I MAIL BOX.

APPLICATION FILED MA1L8, 1911.

1,026,078. Patented May 14, 1912.

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IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII ALB, 1911. Y ,02 73, Patented May 14, 1912.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ELIAS VAN OCTON DAVIS, OF HORNELL, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR 0F ONE-HALF TO JAMES T. FOODY, OF HORNELL, NEW YORK.

MAIL-BOX.

1 b all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ELIAS VAN OOTON DAVIS, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of Hornell, in the county of Steuben and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Mail-Box, of which the following is a specification; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to that class of boxes or receptacles which are primarily intended to receive letters, postal cards, newspapers andother mail matter.

It is the object of this invention to provide a box of this character which is strong, durable and simple in construction so that it can be produced at comparatively low cost, which can be securely locked to insure the safety of any mail matter which may be deposited within the box, and which can be easily opened and the contents thereof readily removed therefrom.

In the accompanying drawings consisting of two sheets: Figure 1 is a vertical section of my improved mail box showing the same closed and in condition for receiving mail matter. Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the delivery door of the mail box opened for discharging the mail matter therefrom. Fig. 3 is a perspective View of the mail box corresponding to Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the same corresponding to Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the releasing bolt and its guide forming part of the means for locking the delivery door in its closed position. Fig. 6 is a similar view of the delivery door and the parts mounted thereon.

Similar letters of reference refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

The receptacle of the mail box which is intended to receive the mail matter from the post man and hold the same securely until released by an authorized party having a proper key for this purpose, comprises an upright rear wall 0; adapted to be secured in any suitable manner to a wall, post or other suitable support, two side walls a projecting forwardly from opposite edges of the rear wall and having their upper edges inclined forwardly, an inclined top it secured to the upper edges of the side walls and hav- Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed March 8, 1911.

Patented May 14, 1912. Serial No. 613,208.

ing its rear edge separated from the rear wall by an opening H through which the mail matter is introduced into the mail box, a vertically swinginglid K pivoted at its rear edge to the rear wall and adapted to close the inlet opening of the mail receptacle, and a front delivery or outlet door A normally arranged in an inclined position between the side walls and engaging at its lower edge with the rear wall and at its upper edge with the underside of the top, as shown in Fig. 1. The front edge of the top preferably projects slightly forwardly beyond the front door in the normal position of the latter so as to prevent the entrance of rain, snow or dirt at this point into the mail receptacle and also to prevent tampering with the lock for the front door which will be presently described. The front door is pivoted so as to be capable of swinging in a vertical plane. preferably by means of a horizontal rod I passing transversely through this door at or about midway between its upper and lower edges and through the side walls a of the mail receptacle.

The front door A of the mail receptacle is normally retained in its inclined or operative position by means of a locking spring or catch 13 which preferably consists of a flat strip of spring steel or other suitable metal arranged lengthwise on the underside of the top and secured at its rear edge to the top while its front end is normally separated a short distance from the top and engages with the inner or rear side of the front door near the upper edge J thereof. When it is desired to remove the contents of the mail box the front end of the spring B is raised above the upper edge of the front door so as to permit the upper part of this door to swing inwardly or backwardly and the lower part of the same to swing outwardly or forwardly, into the position shown in Fig. 2, whereby the contents of the mail box are permitted to discharge downwardly therefrom.

Although various means may be employed for releasing the locking spring B from the front door the means shown in the drawings are suitable and comprise a 105 vertically sliding releasing bolt 0 guided on the rear side of the front door adjacent to the upper edge thereof by means of a way a secured to this door, and a removable key M adapted to be inserted through a key hole in the upper part of the front door and to be turned after it is thus inserted for engaging its wing m with the lower end of the releasing bolt thereby raising the bolt and causing the upper end of the latter to engage with the front end of the locking spring B and lift the same above the path of the front door.

On the lower end of the inner side of the front door is provided a tension device consisting preferably of a plurality of curved springs D which are adapted to engage with the rear wall of the receptacle and to be placed under compression when the front door is moved into its closed position. The instant the spring B is released from the front door by the upward movement of the bolt G the resilience of the springs D causes the lower part of the front door to be moved forwardly and the upper part thereof inwardly, thereby opening this door automatically instead of depending upon manual operation for this purpose, thereby facilitating the discharge of the mail. The lower partof the front door is preferably provided with an observation opening i to permit of determining whether there is any mail matter within the boX without necessitating opening of the same.

Instead of permitting the mail matter to drop from the receptacle onto the floor or the ground a pocket is provided which comprises a bottom E which inclines forwardly and downwardly from the lower edge of the back wall a and has an upwardly turned flange 6 at its lower edge, and two side walls 6 extending downwardly from the side walls a of the receptacle to the opposite longitudinal edges of the pocket bottom E. To facilitate the removal of the mail matter from the pocket the latter is provided with a longitudinal slot Fformed in the lower central part of the bottom thereof and the central part of its front flange 6, thereby enabling the mail matter to be removed from the pocket by simply moving the hand upwardly through the slot F. At opposite edges of the flange e are arranged upwardly projecting fingers, clasps, or horns G which are preferably constructed of spring wire or similar material and which form a rack, clamp or holder into which newspapers and similar articles may be placed which either are too large to pass through the inlet opening H of the receptacle or need not be protected.

This mail box may be constructed mainly of sheet metal at small cost, it effectively protects mail matter against theft or injury, and is very convenient in operation when looking the same preparatory to receiving mail and opening the same for discharging the mail matter therefrom.

I claim as my invention:

A mail boX comprising a receptacle having a body provided with an upright back wall, two upright side walls and an inclined top which are fixed, and a movable inclined front wall pivoted centrally on the side walls to swing vertically and normally engaging its lower end with the rear wall, said rear and front walls converging downwardly in the closed position of the front wall and said front and rear walls diverging downwardly in the open position of the front wall.

ELIAS VAN OGTON DAVIS. lVitnesses B. B. Bixnoooii, J. T. FooDY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Iatents. Washington, D. G. 

